Mine shaft mucking apparatus



Aug. 26, 1958 .l. A. DRAIN EVAL MINE SHAFT MUCKING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 3, 1956 mveNToP: JADKBN A RgAD JZQGOPQON a Arrowyev Aug. 26, 1958 J. A. DRAIN ETAL MINE SHAFT MUCKING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 5. 1956 s: A4 miem JA. @AD Je. Gorgow Afroqey INVSNTO Aug. 26, 1958 J. A. DRMN 'ETAL MINE SHAFT MUCKING PPARATUS Fled April 3, 1956 4 Sheets--Sheei'I I5 INveNTo s: .IAD AnN R JJM@ D y JeGoKQoN HTTORBSY Aug. 26, 1958 v.1. A.'DRA|N ETAL 2,849,138

MINE SHAFT MUCKING APPARATUS Filed April 3, 1956 l 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 ATTO GY Lap estais Patented Aug. 26, 1955? Minn snaar Moonrise APPARATUS .lames A. Drain, Blair, Ontario, and john A. Read and .lohn E. Gordon, Galt, Ontario, Qanada, assignors to .loy Manufacturing Company, Pittsburgh, Pa., n cor poration of Pennsylvania Application April 3, 1956, Serial No. 575,779

12 tClaims. (Cl. 21a-657) This invention relates to a material handling apparatus l and more particularly to an apparatus for mucking during the sinking of mine shafts.

Shaft mucking machines, presently in use, have proposed various types of construction for locating the material removing implement, such as a grapple or scoop, into position for removing the material, one type of construction consisting of mounting the mucking machine on tracks carried on the timber which frames the shaft soI that the machine can be shifted in a horizontal plane within the shaft. may be operated from a Xed position and employs a drag line which is connected to the material removing implement, such as a scoop, and to the side walls of the shaft by means of pulleys whereby the material rem-oving implement may be pulled along the bottom of the shaft and into the material on the shaft bottom to load the material.

One disadvantage of the mucking machines presently in use is that they employ a relatively complex structure in order to obtain `a movement of the grapple or scoop through 360 in a horizontal plane. Therefore, one object of the invention is to provide a mucking apparatus of very simple construction whereby the material removing implement such as a grapple may be maneuvered through 360 in a horizontal plane and also moved vertically, which movements may be carried out simultaneously.

Another disadvantage of the prior machines is that the operator is not positioned so that he may control and carefully observe the positioning and movement of the material removing implement during the mucking operation. In mining operations of the type of shaft sinking necessitates that men work at the bottom of the shaft, it is important that the operator has a clear view of the bottom of the shaft and of the position of the material removing implement at all times.

Therefore, another object of the present invention is to provide a material handling apparatus in which the operator is so placed, at all times, that he may have a clear and unobstructed view of the material removing implement which implement can be moved in all lateral directions for the purpose of picking up and moving material without shifting the position of the apparatus. With this object in view, the controls for operating the material removing implement and positioning it so that it may be placed over the material to be removed, are so located that the operator may operate the same either from a position directly above the implement or from the same level as the material being removed from the shaft bottom.

Another object is to provide a material removing apparatus that can readily be lifted vertically in a mine shaft so that it may be removed from the danger zone during blasting.

These and other objects of the present invention are accomplished by mounting the material removing imple-l ment on the lower end of a boom Which is supported from a xed support consisting in part of the mine framing, or suspended from the boom beneath the floor of in another construction, the machine the skeleton cage operating in the shaft, the boom being provided with means so that it can be swung 1n any direction to move the material removing implement directly above the material which is to be picked up by the same and deposit the material in a suitable container, such as a bucket, for hoisting to ground level.

ln carrying out the invention, the material removing apparatus comprises a supporting structure, a boom movably suspended from said supporting structure and mounted for movement in all lateral directions, a material removing implement suspended from the lower end of said boom, means associated with said boom for operating said material removing implement to effect actuation of the latter along a straight path vertically up and down relative to said boom, `and means for moving said boom in all lateral directions to locate said material removing.

implement into any desired lateral position while the straight path of movement of the implement remains vertical.

This application is a continuation-impart of a copending application Serial No. 514,621, tiled .Tune 10, 1955.

In the following description the construction and operation of the material removing apparatus as applied to a mucking machine in a shaft sinking operation, will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. l illustrates one embodiment of the invention, and

Fig. 2 shows a modified construction to that shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 shows a modification in which the operator controls the operation of the apparatus from the same level as the material being removed.

Fig. 4 is a schematic drawing of the control mechanism used in Fig. 3.

Fig. 4a is a longitudinal vertical section of one of the control valves shown in Fig. 4.

Referring rst to Fig. 1, a skeleton cage, or cribbing 8 is supported and guided by cage tracks 9 and the mucking apparatus is shown as installed in a mine shaft indicated generally by the numeral 10 having framing members 11 which support the cage tracks 9.

The mucking apparatus comprises an elongated boom 12., a pair of extensible power devices compri-sing cylinders 13 and 14, a control cage 15 and a material removing implement, which in the present machine consists of a grapple 16 which may be operated pneumatically, hydrauiically or mechanically. In underground mining or tunneling operations, it is usual to employ compressed air for operating the mining or tunneling machines, therefore, in the present illustrations, the operating parts are described as being pneumatically operated. The upper end of the boom 12 and the actuating cylinders 13 and 14 are connected to and supported by a plate member 17 which desirably is L-shaped, the plate member being securely attached to the floor of the skeleton cage S which is designed to be pulled up and down within the mine shaft on the cage tracks 9 in one of the individual compartments in a well-known manner. It will be seen from the drawings that the upper end of the boom 12 is connected to the plate 17 at the junction point of the two sides of the L by means of a universal pivotal mounting 18 and that the upper ends of each of the cylinders 13 and 1d are attached at each end of the L by means of similar universal joints 19 and 20 respectively. The pistons 13a and 14a, which are associated with the cylinders have their ends pivotally connected to the boom as indicated at 21 and 22. The pistons are actuated by pressure fluid such as hydraulic pressure or gaseous pressure. However, for the purpose of illustrating the invention, they will be described as being operated by a pressure fluid consisting of compressed air. Pressure fluid may be supplied to the cylinders 13 and 14 by the hoses 23, 24, 25 and 26 and the control valve 27, whereby pressure uid may be supplied selectively to the cylinders 13 and 14 through the hoses 23, 24, 25 and 26 for actuating the pistons to swing the boom on its universal pivot 18. The main fluid supply line 7, which is connected to a conventional air compressor, supplies air pressure to the control valve. The supply line 7 also supplies compressed air, through control valve 27 to operate the conventional air motor which drives the winch 31 later referred to. In constructions which employ hydraulic pressure for operating the pistons 13a and 14a, a hydraulic pump may be operated by compressed air to supply hydraulic uid to the cylinders to actuate selectively the pistons 13a and 14a.

The control cage 15 is suspended from the lower end. of the boom 12 by a universal pivotal mounting 28. The grapple 16 is also supported from the lower end of the boom by means of a cable 29 which has one end connected to a bracket 30 and the other end connected to the winch 31. A hose 32 supplies compressed air from the supply line 7 through the control valve 27 to a pneumatic cylinder and piston mechanism 33 for effecting opening and closing the grapple to load and unload it.

The modication illustrated in Fig. 2 differs from the construction shown in Fig. 1 only in that the control cage 15', instead of being suspended from the lower end of the boom 12, is supported on the cross members of the cribbing immediately above the uppen end of the boom.

The operation of the apparatus is very simple. The operator may take his position in the control cage 15 and by operating the control valve 27 may selectively direct fluid pressure to the cylinders 13 and 14 to swing the boom 12 to the desired lateral direction to bring the suspended grapple 16 over the material or muck to be removed. It will be seen that, with this construction, the grapple can be placed directly over the material and can remove material at all points from the shaft bottom even from the corners of the shaft. When the grapple is in its position over the material to be picked up, the operator may operate the control valve 27 to eiect operation of the winch 31 to lower the grapple, which has been previously opened by operation of the control valve, along a straight vertical path and then, when it is in position, closes the grapple, raises the loaded grapple by the winch and then by bringing the pistons 13a and 14a into operation can bring the grapple 16 into position so that the material can be dumped into a bucket 34.

Referring now to Figs. 3, 4 and 4a, there is herein illustrated a control mechanism whereby the apparatus may be operated by an operator standing at the same elevation as the material being removed (on the shaft bottom) and in close proximity thereto. In this modication, the winch 31 with its air motor 35 is mounted on the lower end of the boom 12 by means of a universal pivotal mounting 36. As will be seen clearly from the diagrammatic view illustrated in Fig. 4 the operating elements consisting of the cylinders 13 and 14, air motor 35 and grapple piston and cylinder mechanism 33 are each controlled and operated by one of the control valves 37, 38, 39 and 40 respectively. The control valves may be operated from a remote control device in the form of a control panel 41 held in the hand of the operator. The control valve 4Q for operating the grapple 16 is desirably mounted on the base of the winch 31 while the other control valves 37, 38 and 39 are mounted on some convenient part of the skeleton cage or cribbing S. The control valve panel 41 is provided with four pairs of push buttons, namely, 42, 42a, 43, 43a, 44, 44a and 45, 45a. Each pair of push buttons controlsthe operation of one of the control valves. The push buttons and the hose leading from the push buttons to the control valve work together in pairs as shown, each control valve having a pair of hoses associated therewith for delivering compressed air to one of the pneumatically operated members whereby movement can be imparted'to the member and which movement is translated to obtain a desired movement of the boom and the grapple in one direction and then that movement reversed to obtain a different movement of the boom and grapple. The push buttons mounted on the control panel consist of push buttons 42 and 42a which control the operation of the valve 37; push buttons 43 and 43a control the operation of the control valve 3S; push buttons 44 and 44a control the control valve 39; and push buttons 45 and fz-5a control thc operation of the valve 40. The push buttons 42 and 42a are connected to the opposite ends of the valve 37 by means of the conduits 42!) and 42C; the push buttons and 43a are connected to opposite ends of the control valve 33 by means of conduits 43.5 and 43C; the push buttons 44 and 44a are connected to opposite ends of the control valve 39 by means of the conduits 44!) and 44C and the push buttons 45 and 45a are connected to opposite ends of the control valve 4G by means of the conduits 45h and 45C. The control valve 37 controls the delivery of pressure iluid to the cylinder 14 through the hoses 25 and 26; the control 38 controls the delivery of Huid pressure to the cylinder 13 through the hoses 23 and 24; the control valve 39 controls the delivery of compressed air to the air motor 35 through the air hoses 46 and 47, and the control valve 4t) controls the delivery of compressed air to the cylinder 33 of the 0rapple 16 by means of the air hoses 48 and 49. Each of the valves 37, 38, 39 and 40 are connected to the main uid supply line 27. The push buttons on the control valve panel 41 when operated by the operator will cause the valve mechanism contained within the body of the valve to cause compressed air to flow into one or more of the parts operated by compressed air to be actuated to move the boom laterally to position the grapple over'tl'le material to be removed; to lower and raise the I7rapplc and to open and close the grapple as desired.

The construction of the control valve is illustrated in Fig. 4a and since all of the control valves are of similar design, the construction thereof will be described in conjunction with the control valve 37. The control valve is formed with an inlet 50 communicating with the inside of the valve body and a pair of spaced apart outlets 51 and 52 which are in communicationv with the pressure fluid hoses 26 and 25 respectively. The passage of air pressure to the hoses 25 and 26 is selectively controlled by a conventional spool type valve 53 which in its normal position closes both the outlets 51 and 52. On each side of the spool valve 53 are pistons 54 and 55. The valve body is also provided with exhaust ports 56 and 57 which are located to the left and right of the outlets 51 and 52 respectively and are located so that they can be opened and closed by the movement of the spool valve 53 as hereinafter described. Extending longitudinally of the valve body is an air passage 58 which is in communication with the inlet 50 and with the interior of the body by means of branch lines 59, 60, 61 and 62 respectively, the outlets of the branch lines being normally partially closed by the pistons 54 and S5 respectively. The body is also provided withv bleeder ports 63 and 64 respectively, which are normally closed by the pistons 54 and 55 respectively when the same are in their normal position. At the ends of the body, are air spaces`65' and 66 respectively.

When the valve is in its normal position, the air pressure is equalized on all parts of the valve and pistons so that the valve is at rest with both outlets 51 and 52 closed. If it is desired to cause the piston 14a to be eX- tended and thus move the boom in the same general direction, the operator may press button 42 which will allow air pressure in the air space 65 to escape. The air pressure in the space 66 will cause the spool valve and pistons to shift to the left which movement will open the outlet 51 allowing compressed air to ilow into the top end of the cylinder 14 through the hose 26. At the same time the spool valve will close the discharge 56, and open the outlet 52 so that it is in communication with the exhaust port 57 and thus allow the air in the lower part of the cylinder 14 to be discharged to atmosphere through the hose 25. By simply releasing the push button 42, the valve will return to its normal position since the bleeder ports 63 and 64 will permit equalization of the pressure in the spaces 65 and 66. By pressing the push button 42a, the position of the valve spool is reversed which will direct compressed air to the lower end of the cylinder 14 and cause the piston to be retracted. Two or more buttons may be pressed at the same time to cause one or more of the pressure fluid operated members to function simultaneously.

In the preceding description, the control valves are shown and described as being operated by air pressure but it is to be understood that the contro-l' valves can be operated electrically from a remote control panel. All such arrangements are included Within the ambit of the appended claims.

In the preceding description and the drawings, the mucking apparatus is described and shown as being suspended from the framework of the existing cribbing. A1- ternatively, it may be suspended from the under iiooring of the main hoist cage whereby the mucking apparatus may be raised out of the way when blasting is necessary in the bottom of the shaft.

The foregoing construction eliminates the usual tracks,

trucks, motors, supporting framework, pulleys and drag-4 lines, etc. normally required to obtain universal movement of a loading implement over an area, at the same time retaining the advantages of the hoist operated excavating devices having almost unrestricted hoisting height, lightness, flexibility, and ease of convertibility from one excavating position to another. A further advantage is the greatly increased operators visibility and safety in operation.

While there are in this application specifically described two forms and a modification which the invention may assume in practice, it will be understood that these forms and modification of the same are shown for purposes of illustration and that the invention may be further modied and embodied in various other forms without departing from its spirit or the scope of the appended claims.

What we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. In combination, a supporting structure guided for vertical movement in a mine shaft, a material removing element suspended from said supporting structure for loading material from the shaft bottom, adjustable supporting mechanism for said material removing element for moving the latter into different operating positions laterally within the shaft, motor operated means carried by an element of said supporting mechanism for raising and lowering said material removing element relative to said supporting mechanism, and remote control means operable by an operator standing at the shaft bottom for controlling the operation of said motor operated means.

2. A combination as set forth in claim 1 wherein motor operated means is provided for adjusting said supporting structure, and said control means embodies means operable by the operator standing at the shaft bottom for controlling the operation of said last mentioned motor operated means.

3. A combination as set forth in claim 2 wherein said material removingelement is in the form of a grapple and motor operated means also controllable by the operator, as aforesaid, is provided for opening and closing said grapple.

4. In combination, a supporting structure positionable in a mine shaft, a boom pivotally mounted at its upper end on said supporting structure and extending downwardly within the shaft beneath said structure, a material removing element suspended from the lower end of said boom to move along a vertical path for loading material from the shaft bottom in all angular positions of said boom, motor operated means for swinging said boom on its pivotal mounting to move said material removing element laterally within the shaft, motor operated means carried by said boom for raising and lowering said material removing element relative to said boom, and remote control means operable by an operator standing at the shaft bottom for controlling the operation of said motor operated means.

5. A combination as set forth in claim 4 wherein said material removing element is in the form of a grapple having motor operated means also controllable by the operator standing at the shaft bottom for opening and closing said grapple.

6. A combination as set forth in claim 4 wherein motor operated means is provided for raising and lowering said supporting structure within the mine shaft.

7. A combination as set forth in claim 6 wherein said remote control means embodies control elements mounted on said supporting structure.

8. A combination as set forth in claim 6 wherein said several power operated means are actuated by fluid under pressure and are controlled by valves respectively, and said remote control means includes control elements for controlling the positions of said valves.

9. A combination as set forth in claim 4 wherein said power operated means for raising and lowering said material removing element includes a Winch carried at the lower end of said lboom and a cable wound on said winch and operatively connected to said material removing element.

10. A combination as set forth in claim 7 wherein said control means is mounted at the lower end of said boom.

11. In combination, a supporting structure guided for vertical movement in a mine shaft, a material removing element suspended from said supporting structure for loading material from the shaft bottom, adjustable supporting mechanism for said material removing element for moving the latter into different operating positions laterally within the shaft, motor operated means carried by an element of said supporting mechanism for raising and lowering said material removing element relative to said supporting mechanism, and control means operable by an operator standing at the shaft bottom for controlling the operation of said motor operated means, said control means including a control panel held by the operator during the loading operation and an associated control element carried at the lower end of said adjustable supporting mechanism.v

12. A combination as set forth in claim 3 wherein motor operated means is provided for adjusting said supporting structure, and said control means embodies means operable by the operator standing at the shaft bottom for controlling the operation of said last mentioned motor operated means.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,491,583 Riddell Dec. 20, 1949 2,519,041 Gluck Aug. 15, 1950 2,587,844 Harrison Mar. 4, 1952 2,606,679 Cryderman Aug. l2, 1952 2,712,878 Sutton et al. July 12, 1955 2,720,327 Bain Oct. l-l, 1955 2,726,782 Haulotte Dec. 13, 1955 2,781,140 Cryderman Feb. 12, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 832,479 Germany ----2 Feb. 25, 1952 

